Author Archives: Jim

GFCIs and Christmas lights

Posted on December 23, 2013 by Jim

OK, the battle has begun.  That darned GFCI outlet has refused to let my Christmas lights run in rainy weather too many times.  It’s time to understand this stuff and update my installation techniques so I stand a much better … Continue reading →

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Wire bender

Posted on December 21, 2013 by Jim

I’ve wanted a wire bender for quite a while.  (Not one of those little jewelry wire benders – I can do most of what that does with a pair of needle nose pliers.)  Ever since I’ve been stocking that nice … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellaneous | Tagged | 1 Comment

Protected: Flash memory sound playback

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Jim

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Humidifier hack

Posted on December 17, 2013 by Jim

I’ve had an Aprilaire 600 humidifier on my furnace for several years, but only recently paid enough attention to notice that it was on all the time.  It’s a dribble-water-down-an-aluminum-pad type, with whatever doesn’t get evaporated by the airflow being … Continue reading →

Posted in Home Repair | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Laser level teardown

Posted on November 28, 2013 by Jim

Workshop 88 was given a box (maybe 100?) of as-is laser levels.  I tore one apart for the goodies inside (as I expect several others will do).  Here’s what I learned. The levels were pretty high quality Keson LL150 commercial … Continue reading →

Posted in Workshop 88 Stuff | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

New conical “light box”

Posted on November 25, 2013 by Jim

The standard way to get nice “professional” uniform lighting for technical photos is to use a “light box” with all white insides so light comes pretty uniformly from all directions.  My plan for some time has been to build some … Continue reading →

Posted in Photography/Camera stuff | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Supply voltage brinksmanship for sound modules

Posted on November 14, 2013 by Jim

I’ve been working on two “3 volt” sound modules – a micro SD card module for the dollhouse and a from-scratch flash memory sampled sound playback device for the starter’s gun.  Neither one actually works on 3.3V.  So begins the … Continue reading →

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Chip lifter with Shapelock handle

Posted on November 13, 2013 by Jim

Now that the sound record and playback stuff for the starter’s gun is working, I actually have to pull and replace the PLCC memory chips.  The smallest screwdriver that lives where I do this is a little too big, so … Continue reading →

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Dollhouse net with ATtiny85s

Posted on September 2, 2013 by Jim

(This is one of a pair of unrelated Tiny projects that seem to be going on in parallel.  I don’t think I could have chosen two more confusable projects if I’d tried.) These are the first steps in implementing a … Continue reading →

Posted in Tiny 85 stuff, Workshop 88 Stuff | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

AtTiny84 data logger

Posted on August 31, 2013 by Jim

(This is one of a pair of unrelated Tiny projects that seem to be going on in parallel.  I don’t think I could have chosen two more confusable projects if I’d tried.) From time to time I’ve wished I had … Continue reading →

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